Guide for flush tank float ball



Nov. 5, 1957 B. A. FIGHTMASTER ET AL 2,811,723

GUIDE FOR FLUSH TANK FLOAT BALL Filed March 26, 1956 INVENTORS Bernard A. Eybfmfis'lzr AL /0121x109 United States Patent GUIDE FoR FLUSH TANK FLOAT BALL Bernard A. Fightmaster and Gerald M. Marsh, Liberty, M0.

Application March 26, 1956, Serial No. 573,674

2 Claims. (21. 4--s7 This invention relates to improvements in flush tanks and particularly to the float valve assembly thereof, the primary object being to provide structure associated with a conventional ball type flush tank valve and attached thereto for positively guiding the valve into proper engagement with its seat as the valve descends to stop flow of water through a tubular fitting upon which the seat is formed.

It is the most important object of the present invention to provide a mounting on the aforementioned fitting that is in turn provided with fingers and to which is attached a plurality of flexible elements mounting the valve on the fingers and operable to guide the valve properly 'to its seat.

A further object of this invention is to associate with the aforementioned flexible elements a conical element attached directly to the valve and extending downwardly into the tubular fitting for cooperating with the flexible elements in guiding the valve to its seat.

A still further object of the instant invention is the provision of a flexible pulling medium interconnecting the valve and the conventional trip lever thereby eliminating any frictional contact with conventional guides and consequent faulty operation.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of a flush tank broken away to show the guide for a flush tank float ball forming the subject matter of our instant improvements;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary view similar to Fig. 1, still further broken away to reveal details of construction; and

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the ball valve, the support structure, fingers and chains included in the improvements of the instant invention.

Conventional flush tanks are commonly employed with tubular fittings 12 extending through the bottom wall 14 of tank 10 and held in place by a fastener 16. Fitting 12 is provided with an annular frusto-conical seat 18 at the uppermost end thereof for receiving a float ball type valve 20. An overflow pipe 22 communicates with the fitting 12 below the seat 18 and a seal 24 beneath outturned flange 26 on fitting 12 is clamped tightly in place between flange 26 and the bottom 14 of tank 10 when the fastener 16 is drawn tight against the lower face of bottom 14. A trip lever 28 swingably carried by the tank 10 and attached to a trip handle 30 is conventionally provided in structures of the type to which the instant invention relates.

In accordance with the improvements about to be described, suitable support structure mounted on the fitting 12 may include a split band 32 of resilient material and adapted to be snapped in place around the fitting 12 immediately above flange 26 thereof and adjacent the seat 18. Band 32 is provided with a plurality of upstanding fingers 34 to which are attached at the uppermost ends' of the fingers 34, a number of flexible elements 36 coupled with the valve 20. Additionally, a flexible member 38 interconnects the lever 28 and the valve 20.

2,811,723 Patented Nov. 5, 1957 It is to be preferred that the elements 36 and the member 38 be in the nature of suitable link chains and to the end that the same may all be expeditiously fastened to the valve 20, an eyebolt 40 is provided on the valve 20. Accordingly, through use of a single loop ring or the like 42, the innermost or lowermost ends of the chains 36 and 38 may be pivotally attached to the eyebolt 40.

The preferred method of attaching the chains '36 to their corresponding fingers 34 is shown in the drawing and consists of outwardly struck tabs or cars 44 in the fingers 34 for receiving one of the links of chains 36, it being seen that by such construction the desired and proper lengths of chains 36 may be selected and the cars 44 bent into fastening relationship to the chain links which they receive.

For the most part, the construction above described is adequate to properly guide the valve 20 into engagement with seat 18 thereby stopping the flow of water through the fitting 12. However, in order to further assure proper seating of the valve 20 when it descends toward the fitting 12, there is provided a conical element broadly designated by the numeral 46 depending from the valve 20 through the fitting 12. The conical element 46 chosen for illustration consists of a plurality of relatively thin, elongated, corrosion resistant wires 48 embedded at one end thereof within the valve 20, or otherwise afiixed thereto, and converging relatively as the lowermost end of the element 46 is approached. A relatively small ball 50 on the lowermost end of a center pin 52 may be provided for receiving the lowermost ends of the wires 48. It is to be particularly pointed out that the conical element 46 should be associated with the valve 20 in such manner as to not interfere with a full and complete seating of the valve in the manner shown by Fig. 2 of the drawing.

It is now apparent that in operation valve 20 is unseated in the conventional manner by manipulating handle 30 to swing the lever 28 upwardly thereby exerting a pull on the chain 38. The extent of upward movement of the valve 20 under influence of Water rushing through the fitting 12, is limited by the chains 36 which interconnect the valve 20 and the fingers 34. As soon as the tank 10 is empty, valve 20 will descend toward the seat 18 by gravity and the chains 36, being of equal length, will tend to restrain the ball 20 to a vertical path of travel as it approaches the seat 18. It has been found that chains 36 will properly guide the valve 20 into sealed engagement with the seat 18. However, by the cooperative action of the conical element 46, it is impossible, through the structure shown in the drawing, for valve 20 to improperly engage the seat 18 and thereby cause leakage of water through the fitting 12. Still further, by virtue of the fact that the chain 38 is free to move in any direction without engagement with any part of the flush tank, there is no danger of valve 20 becoming lodged or bound in an open condition. In other words, as distinguished from conventional structures, chain 38 is not provided With guiding means such as those commonly employed on the overflow pipe 22.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. For use with a flush tank having an upright tubular fitting through which water is adapted to flow provided with an upwardly facing valve seat, a generally spherical valve arranged to engage the seat, and a trip lever overhanging the valve and the seat, the improvement of which comprises structure mounted on the fitting and having a plurality of upstanding fingers; a flexible member interconnecting the lever and the valve for unseating the latter as the lever is actuated; flexible elements oppositely coupled with the fingers and the uppermost extremity of the valve for partially guiding the latter; an elongated, straight rod secured at its uppermost end 2 A flush tank va lve assembly gqngp'rising a generally spheri eal valve; a fastening element secured t o v the valve at he PPP I b i 1ll tisr'e ae len i 99 swim wit a valve s if is smemlze lns d ais' d: ur d at it upnertnq t end. t th l wermost extremityofi the yalveendv depend n e e m a generally spherical memberon the fed at thelowermost end thereof; andal plurality of elongated, straight, corrosion resistant wires arranged in spaced relationship to each other with their uppermost ends disposed upon and secured to the valve along a great circle of the valve below the equator thereof and their lower ends disposed upon and secured to the spherical member along a great circle thereof, the wires presenting a frusto-conical valve guide on the valve and depending therefrom.

geferenees Cited inthe file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,304,432 Williamson May20, 1919 1,528 ,G9 ,8 Crane Mar. 3, 1925 1,926,754 Roberts Sept. 12, 1933 2,572,982 Brown Oct. 30, 1951 2,668,297 Reed Feb. 9, 1954 2,678,451 Allen May 18, 1954 2,705,808 Crockett Apr. 12, 1955 2,744, 60 Ha knes May 8, 1956 

